Degradation of Ascorbic Acid in Different Temperatures. The Influence of Temperature on Vitamin C

Scientific Essay from the year 2021 in the subject Chemistry - Food Chemistry, grade: 7 (IB), , language: English, abstract: This paper aims to investigate how different temperatures influence the degradation of vitamin C as well as to clarify the preconception about this vitamin. More specifically, the relationship between the temperature and the concentration of vitamin C will be researched. The research suggests that vitamin C degrades in elevated temperatures so it is highly probable that it also degrades in hot tea and other hot beverages. Consequently, vitamin C is rather not the component of hot tea with lemon juice that provides curative properties, opposite to what many people believe.

The subject is important because it extends the knowledge about how vitamin C degrades in different temperatures and how to handle this vitamin properly. The research shows at which temperature vitamin C is most effective and this information could be useful for pharmaceutical companies when improving the effectiveness and medicinal properties of drugs where vitamin C is the main constituent. The investigation uses the method of redox titration of vitamin C with iodine solution and the detailed information about this process is presented.